Suboxone and Nausea: What Users Say

• dad...
• November 21, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "To make a long story short... I have missed out on 6 years of quality time that I could have spent with my kids making memories. Instead, I was lying in bed making phone calls trying to find pain pills just so I could get out of bed. I knew I had a problem, and I tried to stop. I just couldn't do it. I felt hopeless! But what was worse than feeling hopeless was knowing that I wasn't being the father that my kids deserved to have. Then one day, sitting in the doctor's office, I saw a brochure for Suboxone. That was the day my kids got their Daddy back! Trust me, it works! So please don't make the same mistake I did. Don't wait, your kids need you now!"

• Sin...
• September 29, 2015

For Opioid Use Disorder "I am compelled to share my experience with you. I suffered from a severe back injury years ago. I was prescribed 80mg per day of Methadone, 90mg per day of Oxycodone. For the first 6 months, I thought this is my only way to get through each day, but then my need grew. I was burning through my meds and buying pills off the street. I was using everything from Dilaudid to Methadone, to Oxycodone, Lortabs, Percocets, morphine, fentanyl. You name it, I was using it. I became so addicted to opiates that I was on the verge of losing everything. I'm a single dad, and I was ruining my family's life. I found a Suboxone doctor, and he prescribed 8mg per day. It not only treated my pain but saved my life. I am off of the opiates, and I have my life back."

• Nik...
• December 28, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "I've been on Suboxone for about a year but only took half of the 8mg a day. I heard horror stories, its withdrawals are horrible if you take a lot. I wanted to get off them because my sex drive is non-existent, and I have a boyfriend, so that's a big issue. Also, they make me sleep long, long hours. On my days off, I could sleep all day if I wanted to, they make me constipated. I'm on day 2 of not taking any. I am withdrawing: restless nights, body aches, yawning non-stop, and nausea, but it's not unbearable, it's just annoying. I'm pretty much laying around waiting to feel normal again. Anyone out there that doesn't take the whole strip, you guys can get off it, it's not that bad. Good luck!"

• PRO...
• September 30, 2008

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was addicted to pain medication for over 5 years. I was taking every pain pill I could get my hands on and had no problems getting doctors to give me more. I started taking Suboxone and I am now back to who I once was. It is a true lifesaver. It makes you feel normal and alive again. I have become the person that everyone missed. If you are skeptical like I was, this medication will change your mind. It does work. It does take the withdrawals away and you can function again. I get sick to my stomach just thinking about pain pills. Thank you to the creator and thank you to my family for never giving up on me. Never give up."

• Nog...
• May 16, 2016

For Opioid Use Disorder "I have been on Subs for 7 years and have been very successful with my family and career! Two weeks ago I decided I don't want to depend on anything but myself, well I thought... I have been taking just a quarter strip for one year now and if I skip a day, I can barely function. I called my doctor and he told me there's no withdrawal... Bullshit! It's been two weeks, I haven't taken it, and I still can't sleep at night, my back feels like it's on fire, and I just got done puking my guts out! This has been the hardest thing I have EVER had to overcome! If you're serious about getting clean, DO NOT take this for a long period of time! Yes, it helps with the cravings but not your addiction!"

• cur...
• August 7, 2007

For Opioid Use Disorder "This is the fifth day my husband has been on Suboxone. My husband was on methadone for 4 years. I thought opiates were bad, this methadone is bad news. I am glad there was Suboxone to help him. He wouldn't have made it this far just quitting cold turkey off methadone."

• Tru...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 7, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "Our experience has been an actual dream. Eventually, 8 mg made me sick as a dog. I went to 4 mg, same. By the last few months, I was taking a speck every day, mentally afraid because everyone swears it's the most intense withdrawal. I literally couldn’t stand the nausea anymore and discontinued usage 8 days ago. My partner is also experiencing a forced taper, if you will, and isn’t far behind me. I think he’s at a 16th of an 8 mg and feeling gross from that. I did have mild diarrhea. My legs aren’t fully restless but slightly, especially after any increase in exercise or exertion, and this was my first sober menstruation, which was impressively more painful than anything I’ve experienced. I am sleeping less deep and need less sleep, which I personally enjoy, as my opiate sleep is more like a coma. I believe that it’s different for everyone, but if you do the work and don’t take more than exactly the minimum you need, you can have a painless experience emotionally, physically, mentally."

• Kit...
• November 13, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "I don’t know what happened, but I was excited about taking this. But the first day I had received the prescription late, so I took the required dose of 8mg/2mg. I felt good right away, but about 40 minutes later, I could feel something hit me - I couldn’t stop throwing up, had a horrible migraine headache, and I thought I was going to pass out, dizzy and confused. I could not walk straight. Sweating puddles, my hair was soaking wet. I had to call paramedics to make sure I wasn’t reacting badly to it. I was given 60 strips for under the tongue of film 8mg/2mg to be taken twice a day. I threw up for 8 hours and finally stopped. No sleep, I haven’t taken another dose. Horrible nightmare for me!!"

• Dac...
• July 6, 2019

For Opioid Use Disorder "Another family member and I are prescribed Sub strips by the same doctor. A couple of months ago, when we went to fill them, we noticed the packaging was different. The pharmacy insisted it was the same drug but a generic version. We both have had side effects. 1. We have to take double the dose. 2. We have both had vision problems that are scary as heck. 3. I have been getting nausea. Now, from my experience with companies such as SUN Pharma, where I received a rash from their Subutex, I attest that no matter what these companies tell you, they are screwing around with the formulations. I suggest if you are having side effects such as described, you ask your doctor to write on the script, 'No Sandoz.' This will force your pharmacy to order another brand."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 12, 2020

For Opioid Use Disorder "Updating my last review. The taste is disgusting, and I cannot take it without throwing up. Tried switching to Zubsolv, but as soon as the menthol coating dissolves, I start to gag. It was so bad, and my provider wasn’t taking me seriously, so I showed up to the clinic in active withdrawal to prove my point that I would rather detox on my own than continue to take this drug and vomit repeatedly for at least an hour. I’m on a really high dose, so it’s been ugly, but I just picked up a prescription for Subutex—hopefully, the taste will be bearable. If not, I’m going to have to receive a Sublocade injection once a month."

• Mau...
• November 14, 2016

For Opioid Use Disorder "My experience taking Suboxone was the complete opposite of what I thought it would be. I always viewed Suboxone as the lesser of two evils between methadone because Suboxone contains naloxone, so you technically can't get 'high.' Not that I have anything against people who choose methadone as their recovery route; I have actually tried methadone in the past to actually get high and, well... I succeeded, lol. When I started taking Suboxone, I got really bad side effects after the first month of taking it. I would severely sweat to the point I wanted to bash my head through a wall. It was so rough on my body. But my maintenance program doctor just said it was 'withdrawals' because when you take the pill every day, I guess you're technically withdrawing from the one you took the day before due to the long half-life on Suboxone. So his idea was to up my dose to 12 mg to see if the sweating would go away (I didn't see the logic in that idea too). Anyway, it didn't, so he tossed me some clonidine, which helped a little. But the side effects kept adding up, such as headaches, severe constipation to the point I had to use daily enemas (not normal), abdominal pains came too along with nausea and vomiting (every day). It just got to the point where my mind and body couldn't be on the medication anymore. I was on it for 7 long months, even trying to wean myself down on my own. That was a struggle too, seeing how the withdrawals from Suboxone are supposedly worse than heroin sickness, which my doctor and counselor kindly reminded me after I was already hooked. It was a messy time in my life. Suboxone gave me severe anxiety, which left me buying benzos off the street just to mellow me out. I went to a weekly Suboxone maintenance program on purpose. To get piss tested weekly and to have a doctor and counselor help me move forward. But instead, I felt I was moving 10 steps back. My only option to get off the Suboxone (which was my choice, obviously) was to get the vivitrol shot and have 3 bad days of sickness but be off Suboxone. It took me a week to build myself up to do it because I was terrified of how bad the sickness was going to be. Choosing the vivitrol shot had to be the best worst idea I have ever made. I did get violently sick after it, but it went away. Plus, my doctor who gave me the shot helped me out with some comfort meds, so it wasn't all that bad. That was in December 2015 that I received the shot and have been clean since. So my advice for any addict who's struggling on which route to take for recovery: just get the shot. They'll give comfort meds for the first couple of days, then after that, you'll be shackle-free from drugs. I'm telling ya, choose vivitrol if you need to detox. For others who take Suboxone for other reasons, such as pain or etc., power to you; but if y'all are struggling out there and want to get sober quick, vivitrol's the answer. Methadone and Suboxone will just make you sicker down the road."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• April 3, 2015

For Opioid Use Disorder "Prescribed Suboxone to treat chronic pain. Medication is very effective at treating pain - far better than opiates, anti-seizure meds, and antidepressants. Does cause some mouth tenderness and nausea. No mental status changes experienced while taking Suboxone (unlike opiates do). Suboxone provides a coupon card to cover my copay. Out-of-pocket expense is $0."

• Anonymous
• March 29, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was prescribed Suboxone 8 mg (naloxone 2 mg) and found that the benefits were far greater than the side effects. Upon my initial use, I began to feel better about 30 minutes after administration. About 3 days later, I had no cravings for opiates or other drugs. I began to feel like a normal person again. There are a few side effects that not everybody feels, but I did for many weeks, which was nausea, vomiting, dizziness, muscle aches, and joint pain. I also experienced a lot of sweating. For the nausea and vomiting, my doctor prescribed Phenergan, which worked great except it makes you very sleepy. After about 3 months of taking the Suboxone and a few minor dosage adjustments, I feel even better and have not returned to opiate usage."

• try...
• August 12, 2009

For Opioid Use Disorder "I can't say enough about this medicine. I became addicted to Vicodin and Percocet over the past year. I thought there was no hope for me. A friend of mine who was addicted to OxyContin was put on Suboxone and told me about it. I found a doctor in my area who prescribed it, and this has changed my life. I take half of an 8 mg pill 3 times a day, and I no longer crave pain pills. It is amazing. I have energy and feel great. Only had the bad side effect of nausea and headaches for the first 2 days. I highly recommend this to anyone with an opiate dependence. It will change your life!"

• Jan...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• March 6, 2019

"I started taking this after finding out that my insurance would cover it ($100 every 3 months) vs. buprenorphine ($1300 a month). I was injured in a home invasion and have tried many treatments to get relief. I was previously on Dilaudid and morphine. I have been using Suboxone for 3 years. I would like to stop taking pain meds, but I am not sure if that is going to be possible. I have gradually reduced my dose over time in hopes of stopping altogether. When I stopped for one day, I had the worst pain I have ever had in my life. I did have small withdrawals that were manageable-for example, chills and nausea-but the pain was intense. For now, I am staying on a low dose until I can figure out what to do about my pain. It is much better than morphine, which made me high, and Dilaudid, which made me sleep all day."

• Jli...
• December 18, 2011

For Opioid Use Disorder "Started 8 mg of Suboxone 6 months ago. Tapered down over the last 6 months to 1 mg by cutting the Suboxone 2 mg film in half. Suboxone is amazing and does everything it says. Make sure you do it with a doctor. The withdrawal symptoms are not fun for at least a week, I am on day 5. Chills, flu-like symptoms, anxiety, insomnia, headache, nausea, loss of appetite among symptoms. First day I'm feeling better and haven't used Oxy in half a year. Take some Tylenol, some Ativan. All helped me, now I'm off it."

• Fee...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 8, 2021

For Opioid Use Disorder "I am on 12 mgs of Suboxone and have been for almost 3 months. While I'm so thankful to be off of painkillers, I have lost over 50 pounds. I constantly feel sick with nausea even though they have me on a nausea pill as well (I did buy some Ensures a week ago to at least get vitamins and nutrients in me). Another big problem I'm having is constant constipation, which may be causing the nausea. The doctor has put me on 3 different constipation meds, and still no luck. The doctor suggested I do an enema, and I was finally able to use the bathroom, but I don't feel like it completely emptied me out. I mean, I'm lucky to be able to go once a week, and only if I give myself an enema. I was never even constipated this much on pain pills. I have my next appointment in a few days and am contemplating asking my doctor to wean me off the Suboxone. I have researched a lot on the internet to see if anyone else experienced these problems on Subs and wasn't able to find much information. Has anyone else had these problems?"

• Nik...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 6, 2022

For Opioid Use Disorder "I'd taken Suboxone for 4 years and 2 months (this time around). I'll first say that this got me off fetty and all other things mind/emotion numbing. It works. I regret not knowing more myself and trusting the providers. I was started on 16 mg daily. I had massive headaches, insomnia, and nausea (from how terrible they taste). I'll say don't take your doses anytime close to bed - insomnia. Headaches were due to the mg being too high for me. I was always a functioning addict. I always maintained two jobs. That being said, I worked and went to the gym. My brain was stimulated, and I'm (only guessing as I know myself) that I was making my own endorphins. I'm on day 5 with no subs. I'll post my experience so far."

• Rea...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 17, 2021

For Opioid Use Disorder "I was taking tramadol for about a year for chronic pain, and it was time for me to come off of the drug. So I called up Spiro Behavior Health. Do not go to the one in Chattanooga, TN, they are extremely rude. So the doctor put me on Suboxone for a week and two days. I am agitated, paranoid, nauseated. I brought it up to the doctor. 'It'll be fine. Don't worry, and don't forget you can be on this medication for as long as you like. No side effects' while I am telling him about my side effects. After I went to the desk to schedule my appointments, the lady at the desk literally rolled her eyes because I couldn't do an appointment she wanted to make. Anyway, if you like not having control of your mind, feeling sick and paranoid, this medication is for you. Get off of it as fast as you can... just say no!"